Social classes based on technological possibilities

By KLAUS-GERD GIESEN, Professor of Political Science at the University of Auvergne

“The transhumanist imagination is a “post-human” capitalist space - where human must become the successor to human. For them, humans in their current state are not capable of understanding the complexity of the world or resolve social and political problems, it is therefore technology which must do this.

(photo DR)

This is the age-old dream of the technocrat. We are on the threshold of a great upheaval of the provider state. In respect of the capital-labour ratio, imagine one could implant a chip into a worker to integrate them into the productive system of the firm. You become a simple productive tool. And what will happen with a worker who refuses to have a chip implanted? As for healthcare, this would undoubtedly commence with a probabilistic approach through genetic screening. From then on, one would be given the opportunity to avoid having a child who would probably be ill. There would be financial consequences for people. Above all, it will produce a society of two classes: those who have access to this increased technology and those who reject the technology and are left stranded. These classes would no longer be based upon origin, heritage, the accumulation of capital but upon the accumulation of new technological possibilities integrated into humans.”